Weight Loss Diet Tips and Tricks
With all the demands of modern life, our taste buds have been getting the shaft for too long. Fortunately, there is a way to satisfy your desire for good old-fashioned cooking, keep up with your busy lifestyle and stay on top of your health.
eDiets Chief Nutritionist Susan Burke puts it, "Cooking from scratch -- those three words strike terror in the hearts of kitchen novices, but it's not so hard, really!
"Recipes are actually little guidebooks to good eating," Burke said. "Don't be intimidated by professionals on television. Instead, stick to the basics. There is nothing better than freshly prepared food. You control the ingredients. You can count on there not being too much salt or fat in the dish, and you can control your pocketbook a lot better. I encourage you to join the eDiets Recipe Club."
After a long hard day at work the last thing you want to do is slave over a hot stove. The good news is you don't have to with the quick and easy techniques available from eDiets.
In the time it takes you to drive to a drive-thru, wait in line, order your meal, pay and drive back home, you can prepare a tasty nutritious home-cooked meal and save some cash.
Eating freshly made meals saves you time and money, boosts your nutritional intake, satisfies your taste buds, and helps you to look and feel better than ever.
Burke offers 10 tips for quick cooking and healthy eating:
1. Grilled: Grilled food tastes better whether you use gas or charcoal. Grill anything -- meat, fish, chicken, vegetables, potatoes, even tofu. Remove skin from poultry after cooking to get rid of the saturated fat.
2. Broiled: Just like grilling, broiling is a super-fast way to prepare food. Use a broil pan, because it's designed to let the fat drip away from meat and poultry as it cooks. Fish is more delicate than meat, so don't overcook.
3. Baked: Baked fish is so easy to prepare. Place a couple of filets of firm fish in a Pyrex or glass baking dish. Snapper, cod, grouper, halibut or whatever fish is on sale will work. Slice a big white onion, a red and yellow bell pepper each, and chop up some red, seeded tomatoes. Grind some pepper and put some minced garlic on top, cover with aluminum foil, and bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes, or until fish flakes. Easy!
4. Wrapped: Do the same recipe but put it together in advance, say the night before. Assemble fish and your choice of sliced vegetables and spices (see your eDiets Recipe Club for more ideas about pairing fish with spices) in a big square of foil lightly coated with cooking spray, then fold over twice to make a sealed package. Refrigerate. When you get home, all you need to do is bake fish pouches on a baking sheet or pan at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. The least amount of effort for a lot of good eating.
5. Salad: At least two meals weekly are salad meals at my house. What is more convenient than today's pre-washed greens? "If I'm really in a hurry, I also buy a package of pre-washed and cut broccoli, carrots and snap peas," Burke says. "Toss all together with a can of wild salmon or some sardines or even light tuna. Dress with nonfat salad dressing. It takes about five minutes to put together. I usually serve this meal with whole-wheat pita pockets."
6. Pasta: "Boil water, add pasta and cook until almost done," Burke says. "When you have only about two minutes left to cook the pasta, add a package of pre-cut veggies (I usually buy two of that medley of fresh broccoli, carrots and snap peas). Bring back to a boil, let cook one minute more, then drain, add back to pot, and add a nonfat or low-fat pasta sauce. Mix around until just heated, and serve with a grating of fresh, good-quality Parmesan cheese."
7. Eggs: Healthy, tasty and easy too, frittatas don't have to mean potatoes. And if you're watching your weight, remember, two egg whites are good substitutes for one whole egg. "For two people, I use two whole eggs and four egg whites," Burke says. Beat with 1/3 cup of nonfat milk. In a nonstick pan, saute one red onion and one to two cloves of minced garlic (you can use frozen onion and prepared jarred garlic to save time), add a package of pre-sliced mushrooms (white or portabella, your choice) and cook with a grind of black pepper and crushed red pepper (optional). Add the egg mixture, cook over medium heat until set, and then finish under the broiler until just browned.
8. Crock pot: The definition of no-fuss is using a slow cooker. All you do is put the ingredients in the crock pot before you leave home in the morning. It's easy, and you don't even need to add fat if you use a nonstick cooker. Stews, soups, casseroles -- there are unlimited ideas suited for healthy cooking. Leaner, less-expensive cuts of beef are perfect for slow cookers, and you can even cook fish.
Place cubed onions, carrots, potatoes and cauliflower, sliced mushrooms, chunks of chicken breast, a couple of cans of low-fat chicken broth and thyme, garlic, pepper and celery seed in the pot, cover and turn on low, and in 8 hours you have dinner.
9. Stir Fry: "My favorite cooking pan is my nonstick wok with a domed lid. It makes a meal in minutes," she said. Start by heating a little sesame oil and sauteing a little garlic (a time-saver is jarred minced garlic). Add pre-sliced mushrooms and some frozen onion and sliced red and green peppers; cooking until soft and the liquid is almost evaporated. Add diced chicken breast (or shrimp or tofu... or an ounce each!) and some light soy sauce, and cook for five minutes, or until done, tossing the food so that it heats evenly. Serve over brown rice. "I buy the quick-cooking boil-in-bag for convenience," she said.
10. Casseroles: "A traditional recipe made healthier is my favorite salmon loaf," she said. Flake a large can of salmon (wild salmon is healthiest. Remove bones and skin) and in a mixing bowl, combine with two egg whites then mix in 1/2 cup of fine, whole-wheat bread crumbs mixed with some seasonings. "I like Italian herbs and pepper." Form into a nonstick loaf pan sprayed with cooking spray, and pour over one small can of tomato sauce. Cover with foil and bake, at 350 degrees until done, about 1 hour. Slice and serve with salad.